Foreclosure

Are you facing foreclosure?
In these uncertain economic times, it is easy to fall behind in paying your mortgage. Once you miss even a few payments, you can be faced with your lender foreclosing on your home.

What is a foreclosure?
When you finance the purchase of your home, you give the bank a security interest in your property, called a mortgage. If you fail to meet the terms of the mortgage, including failing to make your entire monthly payment on time each month, the note that you signed at the closing gives the bank the right to foreclose or take your property.There are two types of foreclosure. The first is what we call a strict foreclosure. If there is little or no equity in your property, the bank can ask the court for a strict foreclosure. The court sets a date, called a law day, by which you need to redeem, or payoff, your mortgage or the bank takes possession of your property. The second type of foreclosure is called a
foreclosure by sale. This type is more common and involves the situation where you do have equity in your home. If the court determines that there is a significant amount of equity, it will order a sale date where your property will be sold at auction. If the purchase price is more than the amount of the mortgage combined with the expenses of the foreclosure action, then the owner will received the balance. If the auction price does not cover the debt and the expenses, you could be faced with a deficiency judgment.

What are your options?
When you are faced with a foreclosure, you do have options. We can help and advise you of such options. The Fournier Law Firm offers legal services and solutions, such as a short sale, bank negotiation, loan modification, defense of foreclosure action, and bankruptcy.

1. Short SaleWhat is a Short Sale?
If you cannot afford your mortgage, you may not be able to stay in your house, but you can avoid losing a lot of money and facing a deficiency judgment. We can help you find a real estate professional who can find a buyer for your house. You may think that your house has lost value in this difficult market and is now worth less than the amount you owe on your mortgage. When you find yourself in this position, the Fournier Law Firm can negotiate with your bank to repay less than the full amount of the mortgage from the proceeds of the sale and to forgive the balance on the note. This is called a short sale. The bank agrees to take less than is owed in exchange for getting paid off at the time of the sale.

2. Bank Negotiation
If you find that you have fallen behind in paying your mortgage, but you believe you have the financial ability to catch up in the future. We can work with your lender to restructure your payments to allow you to get back on track over time.

3. Loan modification
If you do not have the ability to make the current payments and/or pay enough to catch up in the near
future, we can work with your bank to determine if you are eligible for a loan modification. If you qualify for one of the many plans proposed by the federal government, state government or the banks
themselves, we may be able to adjust the terms of your mortgage including the interest rate to allow for
you to make a lower monthly payment.*

4. Bankruptcy
As a last option, we can offer you advice concerning the possibility of you filing bankruptcy. There are two types of bankruptcy that may be available to you. The first allows you to stay in your house for a short period of time, while ensuring that you can walk away from the property without owing any additional money. The second allows you to retain your home, if you can demonstrate that you can pay your mortgage, plus enough to catch up on the arrearage over the next five years.

While there are similarities to all of the many foreclosures that the Fournier Law Firm handles, each
client presents different and individual issues. Here, at the Fournier Law Firm we take pride in coming up with individualized and specific solutions for each client. Please contact us today to discuss your
options and to set up your free consultation

*Governmental and institutional solutions to the banking and mortgage crisis are currently evolving.
FLF makes no representations concerning the existence, availability and/or eligibility for any particular program.